Fire vs Flame
by veritas aniki
Summary: Dark spirals and pokeballs have some sort of similiar effect. When combined an evil mind makes the most out of it. Or course Taichi and Agumon can't let that happen. Of course, with some help from pokemon world.


"No no no no no-"

The wind whipped through spiky brown hair as the young man peddled his bike as fast as he could, legs burning as he pushed past his limits. His bike refused to accelerate any more than this.

A roar ripped through the heaven, boulders shaking from the earthquake. This shouldn't be happening.

"We destroyed the cause. Why is this happening!?"

As he continued to push forward, Taichi Kamiya remembered what Izumi had said.

"It's different in the Digi-World... and the same."

"How so?" Mimi asked. The cutest member of their group still couldn't understand the fundamentals of what she'd gone through.

Izumi was distracted by how cute Mimi looked with that troubled face. If Matt hadn't coughed to get his attention, he could've stared at her like that for an hour or so.

Once again not knowing what to do next, he almost knocked the laptop off the desk. He looked at his friends. The old gang was back together again. Remembering the adventures they had when they were kids, in the world called Digi-World, where they'd met strange creatures. After completing a series of quests, they'd left the Digi-World in peace…

...Only to find out years later there was another crisis, with weird spiral shapes affecting the digital monster's good nature and forcing them to be violent. With their experience, and the help of new friends, they'd solved that problem as well. The years that followed were quiet. They grew up and went their own ways, like every adult does. These days they never got to see each other. So much work, so little time.

So, although there was danger ahead of them, deep down they were actually happy. Starved for the friendship they had built up. Enjoying these moments that maybe they'll never get again. Even in this place, in this time of crisis, not all of the crew is here. Matt, dropping his practice for live performance, is here. Mimi, the cute girl who now lives in the USA. Some sort of leader of the group, Taichi, and master of every kind of electronic (even at a young age), Izumi, are here in his house. Little sad greetings went through among them. Uneasily, Izumi was the one who started the subject at hand.

"There is a crack here. It's nothing like I've ever seen before."

They don't even ask if he checked the codes for the Digi-World. Despite all the time that's passed since the last time they met, they still trusted him. Instead, they pursue his thoughts.

"Do you have any guesses?"

"If I would call something it would be... a door."

"A door?" said Mimi. She got excited again.

"Y-yes." He pulled himself away from her eyes. To Izumi, they were like magnets. He had to use all his willpower to focus on the work in front of him.

Taichi was the one who decided to check it out in the field. Going into the Digi-World felt like falling. The first time it happened they couldn't even open their eyes. The feeling was so out of control, it would scare anybody. There's nothing to touch or grab. Just an endless freefall.

But he's doing it for years now. So it almost felt natural, felt like returning home.

Meanwhile, Izumi assisted him from the real world. Mimi decided to call in other members of their little group. She was trying to, anyway. Might as well focus on something constructive, instead of watching Taichi and Izumi, and worrying. Izumi was fine with that. Even though he was now alone with a girl in his room. All he had to worry about was the blood rushing through his face.

Tai had met with a friend already. Even though the little orange Digi monster looked like some sort of carnivorous dinosaur, this was someone he'd known for a long time. Matt was already waiting for him in front of the mysterious gate. He also had a Digi companion with him.

"Gabumon!"

"Agumon!"

The two Digimon raised their paws and greeted each other as friends. Right after that, Taichi and Agumon stepped through the doorway. Matt watched them leave, and suddenly his cool was shattered. Uneasy, he turned his head.

"Gabumon."

"Yes, Matt?"

"Aren't you going to ask why we're not going?"

"It doesn't matter, as long as we're together."

Matt smirked, looking down at this blue-furred canine. Sometimes he thought he doesn't deserve such a companion. Such a friend, who trusted someone like him. If Gabumon didn't need an explanation, there was no reason to go into how they had to guard the door, or anything. He just waited there with a protective determination. Anyone and any monster could tell by their appearance why they were there.

Tai looked at the view in front of him one more time. What he was actually looking at was actually billions of 1's and 0's. But when they combined with each other, they looked like reality. They looked like home. Now he had to protect this home. Who knew what this door contained? He had to learn so they, as a team- as friends- could protect it.

"You ready, buddy?"

"Of course, Tai."

"Then let's go."

He already knew the answer. He hadn't asked to clarify what they were doing, he asked because he was stalling. Because he was scared. Scared of not knowing what was behind the mysterious door. Scared of falling again. So, he had to ask. He needed every ounce of courage he could get. If it weren't for his friend Agumon, he wouldn't even have dared to do this. But, when you think about it, isn't courage born from fear? No matter how scared you are of something, there is an equal chance you can make a move… which is always a better option than doing nothing.

He shook his head a little. He couldn't let himself get too caught up in this deep stuff. All he had to do is move forward. Like kicking a ball on the field of soccer. So he mustered up his determination and forced his legs to move. Something warm brushed against his hand. It was Agumon. That was the last bit of encouragement he needed to step through the black door.

First thing he noticed was a small electric shock. His whole body shivered, but he kept going. There was a faint light in front of him. Then the light grew brighter. So much so, it swallowed up the darkness around him. Even with his eyes closed, he could see only the light. Next thing he knew the electric shock was gone. And now he was standing in a garden. His reflexes came into play, and he shielded his eyes from the sun light. There was the sound of a wild roar, and the world came into focus.

A flame on the end of its tail. Orange, pebbly lizard skin. Wings carrying a dragon-like body.

Well... maybe not 'dragon-like'. More like a wyvern?

Roars echoed through the volcanic mountain. The sound of freedom. He couldn't hear those in the lab. Right, the lab. He remembered the mission.

For one brief moment, he'd had peace. A feeling of serenity, forgetting the past and all of its burdens. How he craved that. Now, the memory of that mission, that quest, snapped him back to reality. He'd done horrible things back in the day. Now was the time to redeem all of that. He pushed away any lingering feelings of peace, and drudged up the guilt of the past. The things he'd done, cloning every Pokémon he got his hands on, just like they'd done to him, becoming the thing he hated.

Now, watching the Charizards flying above the volcano, he saw strange black spirals connecting to the Pokémon. It had some unexplainable effect on them, making them violent. Making them something that doesn't exist in the wild: it made them evil.

They attacked their surroundings like they were obeying a voice in their head. Though his psychic abilities blocked anything that might have affected him the same way, he was sure of it.

He was here to stop this madness, having traced the weird spirals to this place, intending to solve this matter once and for all. For himself, for all Pokémon, for those he'd hurt before. With the painful memory playing in his mind, his giant tail went slack and he closed his eyes. After opening them, they were no longer purple, they were glowing blue. Evidence of his Pokémon abilities.

Mewtwo began to float above the ground. The next second, he took off like a rocket. The air pressure was enough to cause wind turbulence. He flew towards the strange presence he sensed.

There was a human with spiky brown hair. He came to the only logical conclusion.

"A Pokémon and a Pokémon master? I've never seen a Pokémon like that. Reminds me of Charmander, but he doesn't have a flame on the end of his tail. And his head shaped differently."

The volcanic mountain was home to Charmanders, Charmeleons, and their highest evolution type, Charizards. Is there a new type of Pokémon that evolved from them? No, this was not the time for that train of thought. He was here to stop the black spirals. As Mewtwo got closer, one of the black spirals came flying towards him. He held it in mid-air with his telekinetic abilities. There was some kind of clown-like Pokémon behind it, along with a strange black tower. The Pokémon looked humanoid though. Was it even Pokémon? Pokémon can talk like this? Maybe one can... but others?

"Oh, you're pretty strong, huh?"

"Who are you?" asked Mewtwo, voice all at once masculine and feminine. Neither gender, people generally referred to them as 'he' because it was easier. As for Mewtwo, he didn't really care one way or another.

Piedmon smirked. Even with all the evolution options Taichi and his friends had acquired, he was powerful enough to fight and win against all of them. It was actually an easy job to take control of the black spirals.

Considering the dark coloured Digimon- BlackWarGreymon- facing him, it seemed like Mewtwo was going to have to fight his way out before he could solve the crisis at hand.

"I guess humans would call me a businessman. I'm conducting some business and you are getting in my way."

Mewtwo didn't like this answer one bit. More black spirals flew out towards the fire-type Pokémon below, but his attention was on the enormous yellow fireball. It was so large that even BlackWarGreymon, who was about to throw it, had to raise his hand above his metallic head. In response Mewtwo charged his own energy, focusing it into a small black ball with purple lightning flickering around it.

One wouldn't need psychic ability to see how content Piedmon was. He got drunk off of the power he held. Mewtwo saw a Pokéball in his hands, while his own attack met the giant fireball, with a flash of light that looked more like a beam than a flame.

"What's going on?" asked Taichi once he arrived at the volcanic area. He saw these creatures for the first time in his life. Which, honestly, he was pretty used to by now, so it wasn't such a shock. Instead, he focused on the black spirals flying around. He couldn't even warn them. The dark spirals were spreading like poison. Every connection caused a Pokémon to go wild and violent for no apparent reason.

"We have to stop this!"

"Got it, Tai!"

Agumon started his evolution. First becoming Greymon, with bone-like mask and horns that covered his face. The first time Tai saw this monster was when he was trying to save his sister from danger. Then MetalGreymon, with half of his body cybernetic, able to launch nuclear power from his chest. And last, the WarGreymon. The ultimate form of this Digimon. One of the single strongest evolutions among Digimons. Many had fallen by his claws, protected by the shield-like wings on his back. When he opened his emerald eyes, he swung his claws, powerful enough to cut through the near impenetrable chrondigizoit alloy. There were stronger Digimon in their world, but they were so rare. Despite this evolution, WarGreymon was just one versus many.

"Go! Stop them!"

"Got it."

Even his voice sounded way stronger than his cheerful Agumon form. When he charged towards the Charizards, they answered the call with angry roars and flames from their mouths. He didn't want to harm them. In the end, it was just an angry pack in front of him. They were not conscious anymore. WarGreymon tried to pull every blow, only using that enormous fireball to shield himself and Tai. The fight that ensued could be described with many words- including 'scary', 'hot', 'uncertain'- but one thing was sure. It was not easy.

BlackWarGreymon and Piedmon were fighting against Mewtwo. Normally, with all else being equal, in a fight between closely matched Digimon and Pokémon the winner would be the Digimon, due to their natural feats. But when it came to Mewtwo, artificial Pokémon, all bets were off. Piedmon quickly realized this. In the end, Pokémon are just animals couldn't even talk properly. This one was truly a problem, for himself and his plan.

Still, Mewtwo's opponent BlackWarGreymon was very formidable. Piedmon had to use extra measures- like the Pokéball in hand- because he knew he couldn't win. When used the Pokéball it had some sort of an effect to tame Pokémon. When it came to Digimon the effect was very different. Using dark spirals the outcome was phenomenal.

In the distance, another Pokémon arrived. Although it looked like a little sister of Mewtwo's, it was Mew's DNA that was used to make Mewtwo in the lab. Expression unreadable, Mew watched but did not join in the fight.

Charizards were a lot tougher than he thought. WarGreymon try to counter the attacks as gently as possible, but with each strike it got harder. In the end, no matter how weak, they were still violent and he was greatly outnumbered. When he entered the volcanic area, they'd stopped fighting with each other and simultaneously attacked him. Tai was safe, at least.

Their speed in the air was formidable, so he decided to taunt them, drawing them outside. An open area would allow him to maneuver easier. If he stayed in volcano, he could end up cornered.

That decision was a lot easier said than done. When five Charizards jumped on him, WarGreymon had to use a lot of power to shake them off. Whenever he wasn't under attack by fangs, claws, and tails, he was being struck by fire. One by themself was not so dangerous, but this many were overwhelming, hurting him more and more.

When he attacked the dark spirals, he was able to knock out most of them. There was still hope.

Izumi suddenly started shouting. Mimi nearly fell off the chair in alarm.

"What the hell?"

"Did you find something?" asked Takeru.

Matt's brother Takeru brought Taichi's sister Sora, and they'd come as quickly as they could. Obviously, their brothers hadn't told them anything. It was impossible to be mad about their protective nature, but still, sometimes it was annoying. Like this time. Mimi teased them because they arrived while holding hands, so now they were sitting apart in the room. That didn't stop her.

"I hope it's something we can send these two," said Mimi, giving them a wink, while Izumi was screaming with excitement.

"Why didn't I think of this before!?"

"Mimi!" Sora shouted, her cheeks flushed red.

Mimi enjoyed how easy it was to tease them. She was especially fond of how they didn't refuse the implications.

"Actually yes, we need to send some of us, since we don't know how many of them-"

"'How many of' what?" asked Takeru, trying his best to keep a straight face and avoid eye contact with girls.

"Dark towers."

Dark spirals fed from the dark towers in order to work. Destroying them instead of the dark spirals would be more efficient and faster.

"And there's a problem with us going, isn't there?"

"Matt already went looking for it."

"Ah, we don't know where it is, huh."

"So now I have to look for this mysterious door, right?"

Mimi's smug smile told him that it's not up to him- it's up to him and Sora.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Shut up and look for a dark tower."

Matt rode MetalGarurumon, the last evolution line of Garumon, arguing with his friend like they always did. Meanwhile, WarGreymon finished off a few dark spirals.

Mewtwo was having trouble with his opponent. Piedmon had joined the fight. Gaia Force was already a big problem for him, but he'd been able to counter it up until then. After getting shot by it, he hit the ground so hard that it tore up the grass and dirt. Mewtwo wasn't one to give up that easily. Even though he was hit by one of the most powerful attacks in the Digimon world, he was still able to stand up. Hardly- his whole body was trembling- but he was on his feet. The good news was that BlackWarGreymon was also starting to struggle. Fatigue was catching up to him as well. Although neither of them had shown any sign of exhaustion during the actual fight, which was a good thing… right?

"Hey! What's that?"

"Is that Piedmon?"

"And BlackWarGreymon? What are they doing here?"

MetalGarurumon stopped in midair. They had to help this creature who was beaten to the ground. But what about dark towers? Destroying those could end the whole crisis. Except Mewtwo might be dead by then. There was also WarGreymon, fighting with a bunch of Charizards. Crushing the dark spirals one by one took so much time, stamina, and energy. Not to mention all the wounds he'd received. WarGreymon's armor was tough, but even that had started to crumple, revealing the vulnerable skin below. Taichi could almost feel the injuries his Digimon received.

The boys had to decide what to do.

Mewtwo saw- no, felt- the two humans. They were with another weird Pokémon... no, a Pokémon couldn't evolve like this.

"A Digimon," said a voice in his head. Ah, so Mew was here also. He must be pretty rough state for his progenitor to show up.

Taichi briefly met Mewtwo's eyes. Piedmon, in the meantime, managed to get between the boys and dark tower. Mewtwo had seen that dark tower, but never understood its importance.

Now he got it.

It was obvious that MetalGarurumon was ready to start a battle with BlackWarGreymon, and the boys cleared out of the way. MetalGarurumon sent a powerful breath attack, blue energy flying toward the dark tower... only to meet with Gaia Force. When the two ultimate attacks collided, the explosion was powerful enough to destroy a mountain. Yet no one was hurt. Some would call it lucky, due to the fact that the heroes were unharmed, others would call it unlucky, due to the fact that their enemies didn't have so much as a scratch.

Piedmon saw how equally matched the two Digimon were, and he decided to attack the humans. They were less than bugs when compared to his power. Except the new Pokémon, similar to Mewtwo, interfered.

"Those kids again! Protected by something? Coming here to interfere with my plans once again!" As Piedmon shouted, anger boiled up inside him. "And you! You pink creature! You didn't join in, and just watched the battle with this one..." He pointed to barely standing Mewtwo, and then continued. "I thought you'd just stay quiet! Why are you getting in my way now!?"

Mew, floating in the air, responded with a sound almost like a cat's purr.

"I won't let these kids stop me again! Get out of my way!"

A new battle began. Mewtwo assisted Mew, who seemed to be not so much fighting as toying with Piedmon. Mew playfully dodged attacks, parried and countered, but never attacked. Mewtwo did attack, but it wasn't as powerful as before. In the distance BlackWarGreymon and MetalGarurumon kept each other occupied. Even the other Digimons told themselves that they couldn't interfere with this scale of a battle. When Piedmon focusing more and more on Mew, Mewtwo decided to talk to the humans- it was time to get to the bottom of all this.

WarGreymon was bleeding, unable to parry even mere claws. His armor was long gone. But he didn't give up. He felt when MetalGarurumon and BlackWarGreymon's attack met. That kind of explosion could have only been caused by them. So he continued to stand his ground against the Charizards, taking on more than he was capable of already. Still they kept coming. The only good news was that he was able to avoid killing any of them. Some were injured pretty badly due to the nature of the fight, but it couldn't be helped.

Meanwhile, Piedmon started to dominate Mew. If Mew fought as seriously as Mewtwo, the outcome might be less clear, but at this state Piedmon would be the obvious winner. When Mewtwo learned that he needed to destroy the dark tower, he wasn't sure if he could or not. He had never seen this kind of structure. He attacked nonetheless… only to be stopped by Piedmon. The fight was once again the two of them versus Piedmon.

Taichi and Matt exchanged looks. They didn't need words to decide what to do next. They had enough experience and trust with each other. All they needed to do was distract Piedmon. Mewtwo was exhausted and Mew didn't really fight, but they could still beat Piedmon.

Piedmon held both opponents by their necks, ready to show them and their allies the meaning of despair.

"Hey Piedmon!"

"Look over here!"

The two young men were behind him, under the dark tower.

"Why don't you fight against us!"

"Are you scared we'll beat you again?"

Nonsense, mere humans cannot beat him. Not physically. It was their Digmons, fighting on their behalf, who actually beat him. He turned. It was just a moment of decision. He turned to them because he wanted to see them. He wanted to see his real enemies. To see the look on their faces when they realized they had lost.

In that moment, in that single second, Mew and Mewtwo struck at the same time. Piedmon expected Mewtwo to attack. But Mew? Even if he could've anticipated it, at such a close distance all he could parry was Mewtwo's attack, not both.

It was a far greater impact than he thought. This little creature had as much fire power as Mewtwo. He would've never guessed. He'd watched Mewtwo's battle with BlackWarGreymon, but had no way of knowing what Mew was capable of. The two attacks merged, rushing up against Piedmon like a rock under a waterfall. It wasn't enough. Piedmon held his ground against their combined attack. With a little push he got out of the way.

He'd still been hit, though, and was badly injured. But the look of determination in his eyes didn't fade even the slightest.

"Ha! You think that would be enough? You think distracting me to get in one good hit would enough to beat me! You made a mistake, creatures of this world! I'll kill those humans now! Just you wa-"

When he charged towards the humans, he saw what the two legendary Pokémon were now aiming for, instead of him. They were after the dark tower. He could heal, but the tower couldn't. So he instantly changed his direction, attempting to throw himself in front of the attack.

He was too late. The dark tower was destroyed.

As he watched the tower collapse, his eyes caught something else. Piedmon's face, distorted with anger, turned into a grim smile. He let out a cruel laugh.

"Hah! You may have stopped me- but you also killed those two humans! Look at the statues! You turned them into stone, huh. Hah! Hahahaha!"

WarGreymon wasn't floating anymore. His fatigue had reached its limits. If he hadn't pushed himself this much, he would've already turned back into his first form. He used every last ounce of willpower he had in order to stand his guard, but he couldn't possibly take another hit. No amount of willpower would protect him the Charizard's attack. The opponent he faced had a giant flame on his tail. It felt like The Pokémon charged his ultimate attack, reared up and aimed at WarGreymon. Even a strike of the claw or bite would do, but apparently, after so many of them fell this Charizard wasn't about to take any chances. WarGreymon braced himself, but the attack never came- at the last second, the Charizard fired its attack into the sky.

WarGreymon didn't understand at first. When their eyes met, he got it. The dark tower was gone, so was the dark spiral's effect. But he couldn't rest now. Taichi needed him. He took off, drawing on his remaining strength.

He arrived in time to see Piedmon and BlackWarGreymon retreat.

"My plan didn't work, but I took something worth just as much! It's a draw... no, I win! Next time I there won't be anyone left to stop me! Hahahaha."

WarGreymon heard this as he rushed towards Taichi and Matt.

What did Piedmon say? Did he hear it right? What did he take away?

Then he saw the statues. It was Taichi and Matt, frozen in stone. WarGreymon couldn't even maintain his ultimate form. So he let himself revert back when he reached his friend.

"Tai!"

He returned all the way to first form, essentially just a head with eyes and mouth. MetalGarurumon had also reverted to his first form. Facing such a terrible loss, they didn't know what to do but cry.

So they wept bitterly... only to find out something magical. A glow which sprouted hope from the statues.


End file.
